"Memorial for Karl Liebknecht" by Käthe Kollwitz, 1921. Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg were among the founders of the Berlin Spartakusbund (Spartacus League) that evolved into the Communist Party of Germany. On January 15, 1919, Liebknecht and Luxemburg were shot to death during the Spartacus Revolt on the pretext that they were attempting escape.

Artist John Heartfield created this satirical photomontage, showing the metamorphosis from President Friedrich Ebert (caterpillar) to Paul von Hindenburg (pupa) to Adolf Hitler (death’s-head moth). Born Helmut Herzfelde, the artist changed his name to John Heartfield to protest the strong anti-English hostility present in Germany during World War I.